Each Sunday I am going to choose a Psalm and write down some brief thoughts on it.
Today I'm looking at Psalm 34
Another one of my favourites from when I was a teenager.
This Psalm falls into six parts:
V. 1-3
Exaltation of the Lord
V. 4-7
Testimony of Deliverance from fear & the enemy
V. 8-10
Encouraging people to seek the Lord for themselves
V. 11-14
Advice on how to come before God
V. 15-18
The Reaction of God towards the Righteous & the Unrighteous
V. 19-22
The Results of the Righteous & Unrighteous Life
To me the whole psalm is written because of the knowledge found in these verses 19 - 22
Many are the afflictions of the righteous,
But the Lord delivers him out of them all.
20 He guards all his bones;
Not one of them is broken.
21 Evil shall slay the wicked,
And those who hate the righteous shall be condemned.
22 The Lord redeems the soul of His servants,
And none of those who trust in Him shall be condemned.
Exaltation
The Psalmist desires that everyone would worship the True God.
He starts by giving His Adoration but then comes to wanting everyone to experience what he has.
Testimony & Encouragement
He tells what God has done & encourages people to turn to God.
Advice
He gives basic advice on how to have the proper awe and reverence towards God.
God's Reaction
How God treats us as righteous in His sight when we have truly turned to trust Him, compared with how He must treat us if we do not.
Results
The hand of comfort, healing & protection is on us.
God will bring us through all the tribulation others will put on us.
Surely when all of this Psalm is understood and acknowledged then you and I can truly say with the Psalmist:
I always enjoy these! Thanks for sharing!
ReplyDeleteThanks Mandee
DeleteAs somone who doesn't read the Bible nearly as often as I should, I didn't know what'sin Psalm 34. I love not only reading these verses now but also your reflection on them.
ReplyDeleteIt's so important to always praise the Lord--no matter what!
ReplyDeleteWonderful thoughts, Sandra. And I love that you are making this a regular feature. I love the psalms.
ReplyDeletePsalms is one of my favorite go-to when I feel down. It's so full of encouraging verses.
ReplyDeleteWonderful breakdown of this Psalm. Thank you for the encouragement this morning! Blessings!
ReplyDeleteThis is such a wonderful reminder for me today. There are several verses in chapter 34 I have memorized over the years. They are so special to me I'm having my son memorize them also. O MAGNIFY THE LORD, LET US EXALT HIS NAME! I love it, thank you for linking up with Thankful Thursdays.
ReplyDeleteGod is always worthy of praise. I have had times in the recent past where I ceased to praise as circumstances overwhelmed me, but it only brought me into a dark place. No place I ever want to go to again. Thank you for this beautiful reminder!
ReplyDeletegreat reminder
ReplyDeleteI love Psalm 34:1! Life will hit you with challenges, but no matter what we must bless the Lord. Thanks for sharing.
ReplyDelete